Results 1,481-1,500 of 2,335 for speaker:Joe O'Brien

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Community Development Projects (22 Nov 2022)

Joe O'Brien: The Government is aware of the challenges facing community and voluntary organisations and the charities sector in meeting the high cost of energy currently and is committed to supporting the sector in meeting these costs. Not-for-profit and voluntary organisations in the Community and Voluntary sector are woven into the fabric of community life across Ireland, but they are vulnerable to...

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Community Development Projects (22 Nov 2022)

Joe O'Brien: I launchedthe Community Support Fund (CSF)on the 18th November with funding of €10m available to support groups with their energy costs who may not have been deemed eligible under previous Government schemes. The CSFwill provide small grants to a wide and diverse range of local community groups to assist with their energy and running costs. Groups can also use the funding to carry out...

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Grant Payments (22 Nov 2022)

Joe O'Brien: The Government is aware of the challenges facing community and voluntary organisations and the charities sector in meeting the high cost of energy currently and is committed to supporting the sector in meeting these costs. Not-for-profit and voluntary organisations in the Community and Voluntary sector are woven into the fabric of community life across Ireland, but they are vulnerable to the...

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Charitable and Voluntary Organisations (22 Nov 2022)

Joe O'Brien: The Charities Regulatory Authority (the ‘Charities Regulator’) was established in October 2014 pursuant to the Charities Act 2009. The Authority is the State organisation responsible for registering and regulating all of Ireland’s charities, with the mandate to promote good governance practice. My Department has been assigned responsibility for the Charities...

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Approved Housing Bodies (22 Nov 2022)

Joe O'Brien: The Government is aware of the challenges facing community and voluntary organisations and the charities sector in meeting the high cost of energy currently and is committed to supporting the sector in meeting these costs. Not-for-profit and voluntary organisations in the Community and Voluntary sector are woven into the fabric of community life across Ireland, but they are vulnerable to...

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Cost of Living Issues (22 Nov 2022)

Joe O'Brien: The Government is aware of the challenges facing community and voluntary organisations and the charities sector in meeting the high cost of energy currently and is committed to supporting the sector in meeting these costs. Not-for-profit and voluntary organisations in the Community and Voluntary sector are woven into the fabric of community life across Ireland, but they are vulnerable to...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Community Employment Schemes (29 Nov 2022)

Joe O'Brien: I value the role CE supervisors and assistant supervisors play on over 800 CE schemes in local communities across the country. They support CE participants to get work experience and develop future work opportunities for those who are long term unemployed, while providing essential services to local communities. As the Deputy is aware, CE supervisors and assistant supervisors are not...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Child Poverty (29 Nov 2022)

Joe O'Brien: I propose to take Questions Nos. 85 and 87 together. As Minister of State with responsibility for social inclusion, I have a strong interest in addressing all forms of poverty and addressing child poverty is a Government priority.The Roadmap for Social Inclusion 2020-2025 notes that no child in Ireland should live in poverty and that, where it happens due to adverse circumstances, available...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Social Welfare Rates (29 Nov 2022)

Joe O'Brien: Poverty proofing, or a poverty impact assessment, is the process by which policies and programmes are assessed at design, implementation and review stages, with a view to poverty reduction. The Government decided in 2012 to incorporate poverty impact assessments into an integrated social impact assessment in order to support the implementation of the national social target for poverty...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Community Employment Schemes (29 Nov 2022)

Joe O'Brien: I value the role CE supervisors and assistant supervisors play on over 800 CE schemes in providing work experience and development opportunities to long term unemployed and essential services to local communities. As the Deputy is aware, CE supervisors and assistant supervisors are not employees of the Department and are not public servants. They are employees of individual schemes. ...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Community Employment Schemes (29 Nov 2022)

Joe O'Brien: I propose to take Questions Nos. 125 and 129 together. CE supervisors and CE assistant supervisors sought for several years through their union representatives, SIPTU and Forsa, the allocation of Exchequer funding to implement a 2008 Labour Court recommendation relating to the provision of a pension scheme for CE supervisors and CE assistant supervisors who are employed by CE scheme...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Community Employment Schemes (29 Nov 2022)

Joe O'Brien: I propose to take Questions Nos. 388 and 423 together. The Deputy will be aware that a final settlement was reached with unions at the end of 2021 to implement a 2008 Labour Court recommendation relating to the provision of a pension scheme for CE supervisors and CE assistant supervisors who are employed by CE scheme sponsoring organisations. The settlement resolves this long-standing...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Community Employment Schemes (29 Nov 2022)

Joe O'Brien: I propose to take Questions Nos. 425, 437 and 460 together. CE supervisors and CE assistant supervisors sought for several years through their union representatives, SIPTU and Forsa, the allocation of Exchequer funding to implement a 2008 Labour Court recommendation relating to the provision of a pension scheme for CE supervisors and CE assistant supervisors who are employed by CE scheme...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Community Employment Schemes (29 Nov 2022)

Joe O'Brien: As the Deputy will be aware, following an agreement between the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform and the Minister for Social Protection, a final settlement was reached with unions representing CE supervisors and assistant supervisors at the end of 2021 in settlement of this specific 2008 Labour Court recommendation. This settlement resolves the long-standing issue through a once...

Written Answers — Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection: Community Employment Schemes (29 Nov 2022)

Joe O'Brien: Community Employment (CE) is an active labour market programme designed to provide eligible long-term unemployed people and other disadvantaged persons with an opportunity to engage in useful work within their communities on a temporary, fixed term basis. Participation on the scheme is part time - 19.5 hours per week. We are all very conscious of the important role that CE plays and we...

Written Answers — Department of Rural and Community Development: Departmental Schemes (29 Nov 2022)

Joe O'Brien: I propose to take Questions Nos. 807 and 808 together. The Government is aware of the challenges facing community and voluntary organisations and the charities sector, and actively responds to support the sector in meeting these challenges – be they the impact of COVID-19, the high cost of energy currently, or otherwise. We remain committed to supporting the sector through these...

Select Committee on Social Protection: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 37 - Social Protection (Supplementary) (23 Nov 2022)

Joe O'Brien: I assure the Deputy I keep very close eye on the flow-in and the flow-out of CE, Tús and the rural social scheme, RSS. CE and Tús are in a bit of a different space and we are still kind of in a recovery phase from Covid as well. CE is in a better place. We got to a kind of steady-state position in the past month or two in terms of referrals and people leaving. It is important to...

Select Committee on Social Protection: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 37 - Social Protection (Supplementary) (23 Nov 2022)

Joe O'Brien: There were a few things there. On the pension issue, I assume the Deputy is referring to the gratuity for CE supervisors. To my knowledge, the WRC decision was specifically in relation to-----

Select Committee on Social Protection: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 37 - Social Protection (Supplementary) (23 Nov 2022)

Joe O'Brien: The gratuity for CE supervisors is ready to go.

Select Committee on Social Protection: Estimates for Public Services 2022
Vote 37 - Social Protection (Supplementary) (23 Nov 2022)

Joe O'Brien: We are constrained by the WRC decision at the moment.